Product news: The Specialized Aethos is the latest racing bike model from the US manufacturer, which is known for its high-quality racing machines. The name is new and already sounds epic, we're trying to find out what's behind it.
The development of the new Specialized Aethos started with a very special idea, or rather a question. Because the developers at Specialized wanted to break new ground and provide the answer to the following question: "What happened if?"
Well, what if you were to build a bike that could be built without ulterior motives, rules and restrictions and is only committed to the goal of a unique riding experience. What if you built a bike to maximize those timeless moments when everything around you disappears and man and machine become one? Every ambitious cyclist, whether professional, amateur, hobby cyclist or newcomer, knows these moments. And that's exactly what the new Specialized Aethos was created for, which should now bring unique experiences and moments on and with the bike to riders all over the world.
In order to make this possible, the Aethos broke some rules that have long been firmly established in modern cycling. However, this was absolutely necessary in order to achieve the desired result, because this is something to be proud of: At 585 grams, the Aethos has what is probably the lightest road frame with disc brakes ever made. In the overall package with S-Works frame, Dura-Ace Di2 groupset and Roval Alpinist CLX wheels, the complete bike comes without frills and weighs around 6 kilos, all with a frame size of 56 and the lightest Satin Carbon/Jetfuel finish. Nevertheless, the Aethos did not want to chase any number, as they say, but rather focus on the primary goal of ride quality.
Rulebreaker Aethos
The Specialized Aethos was created by not being restricted by any rules and simply staying true to your goal. Even if a racing bike has a certain competitive character given its name alone, there are enough riders who long for more than a pure racing machine. These riders live cycling down to the last detail and have the same high demands on a bike as professionals and racers. Of course, one could have used the methods and technologies of recent years to build the Aethos. But that wasn't the point, because you wanted to consciously ignore all the rules, be they those of the UCI or the racing bike community, and focus on the pure riding experience in the development.
“For many, it's hard to imagine a road bike that isn't designed for racing. We were afraid that the project might encounter resistance and be cancelled. That's why our team worked under cover for over a year. Nobody knew about the project until the design was complete and we could present our designs.” - Stewart Thompson, Road and Gravel Category Leader Specialized
In development, this breach of the rule brought with it a large number of changes. Through a series of supercomputer simulations, round tube shapes were modified in key areas in order to achieve enormous gains in stiffness and balance with a minimum of material. This is how the impressively low weight of the Specialized Aethos became possible.
“The very first frame was only 545 grams. We put it on the test machine and it behaved as it should – it was so strong. All we had to do was add another 10 grams and we were ready to test ride the frame. That was the moment we knew we had discovered something great.” - Peter Denk, Specialized Aethos Engineering Lead
But a featherweight bike isn't fun if it's not easy to ride. Therefore, the driving characteristics of the Aethos have always been at the top of the list. In addition, they always had to keep the engineers in mind: the goal in developing the Aethos frame was the perfect combination of ultimate ride feel, low weight and unparalleled style - from acceleration on steep climbs and technical descents to all-day comfort even on the longest coffee rides – the Aethos should be great for everything.
So it happened that the Aethos violated some regulations and, for example, simply ignored the weight limit of the UCI. Nevertheless, the Aethos is still designed for a tall, powerful rider and is said to have all the handling, responsiveness and stiffness characteristics that you have come to expect from any other Specialized.
Similar to the frame, the attachments such as wheels and cockpit were also perfectly matched to the overall concept. The 1.284 gram light Roval Alpinist wheels and the new Alpinist handlebar and stem combination were created for the Aethos.
Specialized Aethos Geometry
| XS | S | M | L | XL | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| seat tube (in mm) | 490 | 520 | 540 | 560 | 580 |
| Top tube horizontal (in mm) | 515 | 530 | 545 | 560 | 575 |
| head tube (in mm) | 105 | 125 | 145 | 165 | 185 |
| chainstay (in mm) | 422 | 422 | 422 | 422 | 422 |
| Steering angle (in °) | 71 | 72 | 72.5 | 73 | 73.3 |
| Seat angle (in °) | 75 | 74.5 | 74 | 73.5 | 73.1 |
| Reach (mm) | 373 | 377 | 380 | 384 | 388 |
| Stacks (in mm) | 529 | 551 | 572 | 593 | 613 |
Specialized Aethos – The models at a glance
The S-Works Aethos with Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 comes with a Fact 12r carbon frame, Roval Alpinist seat post, S-Works carbon handlebars, Roval Alpinist CLX wheels and S-Works Power saddle for 11.799 euros at exactly 6 kilos. For the fans of Sram there is the same model with a Sram Red eTap AXS for the same price, at 6,26 kilos.
Specialized Aethos Founders Edition
Every new bike platform at Specialized is duly celebrated and honored with a Founder's Edition. Limited to 300 bikes worldwide, this edition offers the lightest overall package and features an exclusive stunning livery with tone-on-tone finishes. This S-Works Aethos includes Shimano Di2 components, the brand new Roval Alpinist handlebar and stem combination as well as an improved ceramic bottom bracket and optimized jockey wheels.
WEB: specialized.de